Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Ems topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council hires Emergency Ambulance Services to provide Westminster 9‑1‑1 ambulance transport
Summary
After a consultant review and competitive RFP, the council on June 11 awarded a five‑year emergency ambulance transport contract to Emergency Ambulance Services and approved a seven‑year billing agreement with Whitman Enterprises; staff said the vendor selection was based on performance, 9‑1‑1 experience and surge capacity.
The Westminster City Council on June 11 approved a five‑year contract with Emergency Ambulance Services to provide basic life‑support ambulance transportation in the city and also authorized a seven‑year ambulance billing services contract with Whitman Enterprises.
The action followed a two‑phase procurement supported by consultant AP Triton. Consultant Rich Buchanan told the council the city’s EMS demand, payer mix (an above‑average share of Medicare and Medi‑Cal patients), and call volumes made a third‑party transport model the most fiscally practical and operationally reliable approach. Buchanan said the review evaluated experience with 9‑1‑1 response, surge capacity, quality assurance, financial stability and pricing.
Two bidders met the city’s 9‑1‑1 experience and performance requirements; AP Triton and the city’s selection panel recommended Emergency Ambulance Services as the city’s top scoring proposer. Council approved a five‑year contract for ambulance transport, $8,311,461.91 across the five‑year term, with two one‑year renewal options. The council separately approved a seven‑year billing agreement with Whitman Enterprises at 3.75 percent of net collections to handle ambulance billing and collections.
Consultant Buchanan said Westminster’s current system — County Fire paramedics for ALS first response plus the private ambulance contractor for transport — meets or exceeds national response‑time percentile targets and that the selected proposer demonstrated adequate surge capacity and local familiarity. Buchanan also told council the city’s estimated billed revenue and conservative recovery assumptions translated to a positive net revenue contribution to the city under the third‑party transport model; he said other models (city‑run ambulance or municipal ambulance operator) would not improve that fiscal outcome without different trade‑offs.
Council members asked for contract performance reporting and monitoring. The awarded transport and billing contracts require monthly performance metrics and allow for contractual penalties and corrective steps if service standards are not met. The council recorded unanimous (5‑0) roll‑call votes approving the contracts.
